$ (-1)\cdot(-1)\cdot (-1)\cdot (-1)\cdot (-1) = \; ?$
Answer: $(-1)\cdot(-1)\cdot (-1)\cdot (-1)\cdot (-1)$ is $-1$ multiplied by itself $5$ times. The base is $-1$ The exponent is $5$ $(-1)\cdot(-1)\cdot (-1)\cdot (-1)\cdot (-1)$ is $-1$ to the power of $5$ $(-1)\cdot(-1)\cdot (-1)\cdot (-1)\cdot (-1) = -1^{5}$